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Daily Archives: March 15, 2012

Leave it to John Leonardis, the right-hand man for Rutgers wrestling coach Scott Goodale, to put in perspective what it would mean for any one of the five Scarlet Knights competing in this weekend’s NCAA Championships to earn All-America status.

Goodale has accomplished many great things since leaving Jackson Memorial High to take over a struggling Rutgers wrestling program five years ago. It was only a year ago when the Scarlet Knights took the national wrestling scene by storm, recording a school-record 21 victories and finishing the year ranked No. 9 in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll.

And despite sculpting 27 Scarlet Knights into EIWA place-winners and 25 NCAA qualifiers, Goodale has yet to produce an All-American. In fact, not since Tom Tanis placed fourth nationally at 184 pounds in 2002 has any Rutgers wrestler reached the top-8 podium at the NCAA Tournament.

So what would it mean for Goodale and Co. to finally produce an All-American this weekend?

“That looms over our head,” said Leonardis, a Rutgers assistant throughout Goodale’s tenure. “The coaches in the wrestling world are usually multiple-times national champs, Olympic champs, All-Americans, so it’s kind of the strong survives. In order of us to attract great kids into this program, gaining an All-American is important just because it proves to recruits that we have what it takes. For us, it would really bonafide the program.”

Goodale took it one step further last weekend when asked about his quest to produce an All-American.

“It’s important,” Goodale said. “It’s what’s missing. We certainly have the talent level and the kids who can do it. And they all know that. It’s about breaking through. I’ve been asked, ‘Is it a failed season?’ I think every coach would tell you, ‘Yeah, if you don’t have All-Americans or champs it’s not a successful year at this level in this sport.’ It means a lot.

“We have to take the next step. This is the next step, and we have five guys who truly have a chance. I hope it’s in the cards. We’re not going to stop trying to create national champions or All-Americans if it doesn’t happen, but it’s the next step.”

Click HERE to read about Scott Winston’s chances in the 165-pound weight class

When the NCAA Championships begin this afternoon in St. Louis, 141-pounder Billy Ashnault, 149-pounder Mario Mason, 165-pounder Scott Winston, 174-pounder Greg Zannetti and 197-pounder Dan Rinaldi will be among the Scarlet Knights trying to accomplish that goal.

Goodale talked about their chances in this Q&A conducted late last week:

Scuttlebutt: How would you describe your anticipation level heading into the national tournament?

Goodale: “I think the best word is anxious. I just want to get out there and get this thing going. We’ve been building up for this event. Hopefully we put our best foot forward. It’s a good opportunity. We have our five best guys going. Assuming Mario gets healthy we have five guys who have a realistic chance to win matches, and hopefully one or all of them break through. That’s kind of what I expect. I think we’ll compete real hard, and put ourselves in position to win matches.”

Scuttlebutt: You talk a lot about wanting to peak at the right time of the season. Is that the case right now?

First-year Rutgers women’s basketball assistant coach Tia Jackson spent the previous four seasons in charge at the University of Washington, where she got familiar with cross-state rival Gonzaga.

During Jackson’s tenure, Washington was 0-3 against Gonzaga, including two losses at McCarthy Athletic Center, where No. 6 Rutgers will face No. 11 Gonzaga at 4:15 p.m. Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Only about 20 tickets remain available in the 6,000-seat arena, according to the Gonzaga athletic department.

Jackson, who was fired after four losing seasons, also coached Gonzaga star Katelan Redmon, who was a 2008 Pac-10 All-Freshman selection before transferring out of Washington. Redmon is averaging 13.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game as a fifth-year senior who has stepped up following the graduation of former All-American Courtney Vandersloot.

Jackson, who said she was not the main coach on the scouting report despite her familiarity with the opponent, talked to the media Friday morning about the numerous storylines in which she is involved:

Q: You are more familiar with Gonzaga than most. Tell us what to expect.

A: “They are majorly different not having Courtney on their team. But very well coached still. I think Kelly (Graves) does a good job of teaching what he knows. They’re a team that is a straight on-ball team, they’re a team that loves to get up and down the floor and run. Those are some consistencies that I’ve seen from the team with Courtney and the team without Courtney.”

If so, who should it be against and why? College Football is part of the fond fabric in America due to the school spirit and contagious support from the alums and home state. Every Saturday, millions of people tune in to watch their favorite college football teams battle among each other for superiority, respect, and […]

We preview this weekend’s action here Coming off of the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago, Rutgers will send ten male and two female track and field athletes to this weekend’s NCAA East Regional Preliminary Championships. It takes place from May 24th to 26th in Tampa, Florida, Here is full breakdown of which athletes are […]